Alice B. Grist

Have you ever wanted to read the cards, but where unsure where to start? This little gift from me to you will enable you to start reading and understanding the tarot cards really easily. Use it to practice your readings, to get to know tarot and to gradually progress in your understanding of your own intuition. This can be used by beginners, or by experienced readers who simply want a fresh take on their usual habits.

Use this as a quick reference, and print it out to use as a template to scribble your thoughts on for the suggested readings below.Starting...

To do your own reading (or do swaps with a friend), simply set your intent to get the most positive, highest answers at this moment. Light a candle, undertake a brief meditation, set an intent, make a wish, take a deep breath and draw your attention to the moment.

Shuffle and split the cards, as feels natural and right for you. Then choose whichever cards you are drawn to, be they from the top, bottom or middle of the pile.Top Tips on how to read the cards…

Trust your intuition. If a certain card makes you feel a certain way, raises a particular emotion, then write that response down. The tarot are a mirror to your inner world. Make this personal. Let each card speak to you and your experiences. If you worry about getting the ‘right’ answer from the book then you will always be second-guessing yourself. Let the cards speak to you, your life, and your experience.

Note down any particular color or symbol that attracts you with each card. Think about what this means to you, right now. Why did you pick up on it? If nothing springs to mind, contemplate it over the next few days. Sometimes a message will rise up right when you aren’t expecting it.

Know that the tarot simply reflect life, they do not cause it. As such the cards have a wealth of meaning. Seemingly ‘dark’ cards such as death or the hanged man actually have very positive meanings. For example: Death = New Life and New Beginnings. Look for the learning in each card. Do not see this as a predictive exercise, but an educational one that will help expand your understanding of self and any current situation!

If you become stuck and are unsure of what a card is saying then keep it out. Set up a little altar and revisit it daily. Let the card/s slowly seep into your consciousness. Keep a sharp eye on any signs that may arise in tandem that reflect the meaning of the cards. You may also notice a theme to your dreams or conversations. It is magical how tarot can almost step out from the paper and arise through many little synchronicities. Allow for that magic to happen and have faith that it is for the best and your highest purpose when it does.

DIY Guidance Reading

This reading gives you a beautiful overview of your life and all it’s facets. Pick one card for each section. Tip: print this out to make notes and to meditate upon and revisit in the future.

Past – one card to represent a theme or situation the past wants you to acknowledge right now.

Present – one card to reflect your current situation and an objective view of it.

Future – one card to set an intent for the future. What is the highest outcome right now? And how can you achieve this.

Ego – this card represents what your fear is trying to make you believe. This is an illusion and represents our worry and anxiety. It is a choice and doesn’t have to be true.

Intuition – The warm loving guidance from the sacred divine. Your own intuition. The advice your highest self wants you to hear right now.

Love life – one card to reflect your current love situation and/or how to make the most of / understand your situation right now.

Career – One card to represent your current working life, advice, guidance etc.

Health – One card to show how you can improve health or deal with arising or current health implications.

Family and friends – advice and guidance relating to your loved ones and your relationship with them.

This is an easy to use Dirty & Divine guidance spread. You can use tarot cards, or any other guidance card pack. What matters is the intent and a willingness to focus your perception on what the cards bring about. It is very simple. Maybe do this reading in tandem with a friend so you can feed back to each other!

Set the scene, listen to some soulful tunes, light a candle, burn some incense. Make the moment revelatory and ready. Shuffle your pack, thinking gently on your life and any particular situations and questions. When you feel right pick two cards and lay them face down. The left one is your 'dirty'. The right one is your 'divine'. Then pick a third and place it above.

Turn them over one at a time.

Your Dirty... This card represents your humanity, the everyday grit that sits under your nails. The life events that irk you. The emotion of it, the fear, the feelings. All the feelings. It reflects back to you where you are at in your daily existence.

Your Divine... This card is the guidance and sense that is being sent from your highest intuitive self. It reflects spiritual knowing. Perhaps what you already know, deep down. Maybe it mirrors back your own intuition. That voice, the one you keep ignoring, feel her here.

These two cards may sit in opposition to each other, or they may marry and meet quite well, reflecting different aspects of your current position in life. Take some time to really connect to the images, the colors, the details.

Finally. Turn over the third card. This is the card that brings your Dirty and your Divine together. It offers healing and wisdom and beyond that, probably a heap of common sense. This third card shows how you can combine your two aspects, your dirty, your humanity, and your divine, your spirit, together for the highest resolution of your current life situation.

You may wish to set these cards out in a little DIY altar, alongside some crystals or a favorite image that represents your desires, and leave them in your sight line for a week or so. So that you might stew on them and allow their magic and message to infuse and altar as your days go by. Let them restore your energy and sanity as their message permeates your day!

Dirty & Divine Year Ahead Reading

This one is easy and fun! Print off this template, make notes on it and keep it on your fridge, in your diary or on your altar for the next 12 months. Use it as an oracle as the year progresses.

Pick one card for your ‘Dirty’, and another for your ‘Divine’. Write down a few words that come to you as you choose each card. Then use your tarot, or another guidance card pack, to pick your ‘theme’ of the month.

Month 1

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 2

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 3

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 4

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 5

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 6

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 7

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 8

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 9

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 10

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 11

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Month 12

Dirty:

Divine:

Theme:

Daily Reading / Ask a Question

This is the best way to get to know the cards and can be used as frequently as you life. It is so simple.

Bring to mind a question or a situation. Close your eyes, gently shuffle the cards, ask for guidance.

When the time feels right. Stop shuffling. Cut the cards. Put the bottom stack on the top (or vice versa). Then choose the top card. This is your answer. Let this card sit with you. Place it by your bed or in your pocket. Let it’s message infuse your day. Take it into your heart and let it speak objectively.

You can repeat this as a daily exercise, as a simple heads up of how your day might go. And you can use it to help gently guide your thoughts and decision-making.

Getting deeper...

I hope you enjoy these free readings and tips. If you are ready to take your journey deeper, dirtier and more divine, then order a signed copy of my new book Dirty & Divine from here...